Queen & Slim
Directed by: Melina Matsoukas
Written by: Lena Waithe
Starring: Daniel Kaluuya, Jodie Turner-Smith, Bokeem Woodbine, Jahi Di'Allo Winston, Chloë Sevigny, Bertrand E. Boyd II, Benito Martinez, Colby Boothman, Sturgill Simpson, Flea
Drama - 132 min Reviewed by Charlie Juhl on 25 Nov 2019
Written by: Lena Waithe
Starring: Daniel Kaluuya, Jodie Turner-Smith, Bokeem Woodbine, Jahi Di'Allo Winston, Chloë Sevigny, Bertrand E. Boyd II, Benito Martinez, Colby Boothman, Sturgill Simpson, Flea
Drama - 132 min Reviewed by Charlie Juhl on 25 Nov 2019
Melina Matsoukas’s Queen & Slim is not a horror movie, but it can be as suspenseful and grotesque as one at times. The film is downright scary because it is possible. Even though Queen & Slim is a particular work of fiction, it feels believable when a white police officer goes overboard on a cold Cleveland night and the worst fears of an African-American pair come to life. Queen & Slim can feel like a warning, a cause and effect piece, and an authentic mirror showcasing contemporary American society. There are times Matsoukas leans too far over the edge or takes us on yet another suspect tangent derailing the narrative, but this first time feature film director weaves together a parable we all wish remained fixed on a movie screen, yet knowing all too well it is only a matter of time before fiction becomes reality.
On any other night, Slim, we never learn real names, (Daniel Kaluuya, Black Panther) and Queen's first date would conclude after dinner, they would go their separate ways, and never see one another other again. Slim’s TRUSTGOD license plate and deep family connections do not, on the surface, gel with Queen’s (Jodie Turner-Smith) law degree and preference for solitude. The only things they have in common are an ability to adeptly parry one another with wordplay and their skin color. When their world turns upside down in a matter of a few intense, life-or-death seconds, their personalities slam into overdrive. Slim wants to call his father and turn himself in - the authorities will understand what happened. Queen, wise to how it will all play out, turns into the duo’s alpha and commands Slim to drive and put distance between themselves and Cleveland.
On any other night, Slim, we never learn real names, (Daniel Kaluuya, Black Panther) and Queen's first date would conclude after dinner, they would go their separate ways, and never see one another other again. Slim’s TRUSTGOD license plate and deep family connections do not, on the surface, gel with Queen’s (Jodie Turner-Smith) law degree and preference for solitude. The only things they have in common are an ability to adeptly parry one another with wordplay and their skin color. When their world turns upside down in a matter of a few intense, life-or-death seconds, their personalities slam into overdrive. Slim wants to call his father and turn himself in - the authorities will understand what happened. Queen, wise to how it will all play out, turns into the duo’s alpha and commands Slim to drive and put distance between themselves and Cleveland.
The duo’s fame travels faster than they do. A man recognizes them in a parking lot and offers a raised “power to the people” fist. He’s serious, but the ones on the lam do not share his appetite for vigor. Queen and Slim are not executing a black power agenda nor have any social cause to advocate - they only want to survive. The rest of the world fills in the gaps for them. Newspapers and talk shows proclaim them a modern day Bonnie & Clyde, armed and dangerous, and on a mission to wreak havoc. Winding their way down south toward New Orleans, they encounter fellow African-Americans who know full well the pair are not in vendetta mode; therefore, drinks are on the house and knowing head nods are exchanged.
Perhaps it seeks ways to channel their adrenaline, but writer Lena Waithe litters the script with some oddball tangents nobody in their right mind trying to escape notice would embark upon. To Queen's chagrin, Slim wants to go dancing. To Slim's frustration, Queen wants to pull over and play with some horses. In many ways, Queen & Slim is reminiscent of Green Book - we’re on a tour of the south with an odd couple under less than hospitable circumstances. Naturally, as the two get to know one another, they also begin to transform. Queen crawls out of her shell and opens up about a painful past. Slim stops chewing too loud.
In New Orleans, the pair hides out with Uncle Earl (Bokeem Woodbine), a man who wants to appear as a pimp more than operate as one. He talks a rough game, but pierce his shell, and Earl proves to be a most reliable ally and does not take kindly when police officers show up uninvited. Queen and Slim also spend an afternoon with a pre-teen boy who becomes socially and politically aware for the first time. This sprite of a character throws Matsoukas’s otherwise tight and earnest script off a cliff. The country begins to tear itself apart along racial lines and engage in street confrontations which look similar to the Ferguson “Hands up, Don’t shoot” protests. Matsoukas attempts a tricky juxtaposition between love and hate through an editing montage which thuds face down in the mud instead of explaining anything with the grace it requires.
However, see Queen & Slim with an audience in a theater. You will cheer and groan in harmony. Experiencing thrilling highs and lows with a few dozen complete strangers is always a wonderful time. Everybody will buy into the situation and cross their fingers for clarity and understanding, but will also urge the two to get going; stop messing around with horses and hanging out of the car window to feel the wind already. Act like you’re really trying to keep your heads down.
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